Da Vinci’s Waterpolyph
Zone: Deeper parts of C1 (20-120 meters in depth)
Size: 1,85-3,5 meters (height)
Reproduction:
Unlike its ancestors whose seeds got knocked out by the wind or water movement, Taxonomum davincii doesn’t depend on the environment to spread its seeds, but instead expels them itself. When producing the seeds, the parts of the stem above and below where the the seeds will be produced will change their shape to a wide discus, which is made of specialized cells that are filled with water. Once this happens the seeds will be produced in a ring arrangement inside chambers in between the discus. These chambers are filled with water and only have one opening leading to the outside covered by a thin layer of cells. Once the seeds are ready to be expelled, they detach from the stem and the specialized cells are pumped with water through an active transport mechanism connected to the straw, inflating it and increasing the pressure inside the chambers. The thin cell layer won’t be able to handle the pressure and will pop, expelling the seed outside like a cannonball. Once the seeds are expelled, the polyph will die due to the amount of energy used to create the discus and all the process behind inflating it. The dead polyph will be decomposed and serve as food for its offspring.
Expansion:
Taxonomum davincii has colonized the empty deep waters of zone C1 due to the lack of competition there, as the other 2 polyphs live in the shallower parts. This also allowed other species like L. planocorpus or N. remucauda to move to these deeper parts to feed on T. davincii.
Adaptations:
The discus produced when reproducing isn’t just used to create the pressure to launch the seeds, but also serves as defense, as the encased seeds cannot be eaten by the bronisławs. They only produce 1 stem like their ancestor, as more stems would produce more discus which would drain the organism of energy completely.
